A contour drawing of our cat’s curled gesture became the basis for playing with & exploring contrasting color fields. The cat’s fur suggested the background of curvilinear,layered textures and implied movement.

Sketched from the many residents of Roger Williams Zoo in RI, this majestic bird was the vehicle for practicing composition, negative space, and free, efficient gestural strokes; for both feathers and water.

A commissioned work from the owner’s photo of his beloved cat, stretched across a window sill, this translation of the range of values and color patterns evince an almost ethereal sense of feline mystery.

Adopting indelible mediums for sketching, the pen & ink line is most unforgiving, and hence trains the eye and hand. The color pencil added an air of mystique to the composition, while connecting the two studies together.

Our Siamese cat curled in a seemingly impossible position became the simple form to foil an active field of gold marks, that might suggest dreaming. The textured ground was inspired by Gustav Klimt’s work.

In an evocative meditative pose, our gray-striped coon cat always seemed to be in a tranquil state; as conveyed by the choice of pencil color. She lived a long time, over 100 human years, but her calming effect endures via the sketch.

Attracted by its constant twittering and fluttering activity across the grass, this little creature seemed to have been abandoned. I followed it across the park lawn of Queen’s Gate Park in Brisbane, and sketched its contours as it finally settled at the base of a huge palm, having found a column of ants for its meal.

During a seminar to paint buildings in Key West, my attention was otherwise absorbed by the free-ranging roosters and hens typical to the keys. The intense study (and chasing) of the creature informed my view, and resulted in this very quick color impression executed with a huge brush on a small panel.

During my workshop, a student brought along their well-behaved dog – a rust-colored Springer Spaniel – which became the live model for a demo. “Hooper” sat at the easel, and was remarkably stationary for the quick pencil composition and the beginning color washes.

Watchfully aware of each other, my cat was still just long enough for me to capture its crouched gesture and nearly cross-eyed expression. The range of charcoal values was carefully employed to suggest the companion cat, and enhance the effect of depth and focus with light and soft color.

Mineral Spring Farm Claiborne, MD A seldom experienced place for the artist, this small horse barn on farm estate in Claiborne, MD became a careful exercise in restraint for conveying the many nuances of white siding, shadows and shading and fencing. The...